Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Stake in MSCI Inc $MSCI

Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lowered its position in MSCI Inc (NYSE:MSCI) by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,461 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 8,500 shares during the period. MSCI comprises about 0.7% of Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in MSCI were worth $19,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of MSCI by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,003 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of MSCI by 39.0% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 6,585 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,724,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. bought a new position in MSCI in the 2nd quarter worth $280,000. Value Partners Investments Inc. lifted its position in MSCI by 6.1% during the second quarter. Value Partners Investments Inc. now owns 4,402 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,535,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its position in MSCI by 2.1% during the second quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 4,653 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.97% of the company’s stock.

MSCI Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:MSCI opened at $581.11 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $565.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $564.28. MSCI Inc has a 52 week low of $486.73 and a 52 week high of $634.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.83 and a beta of 1.30.

MSCI (NYSE:MSCI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The technology company reported $4.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.37 by $0.10. MSCI had a net margin of 40.03% and a negative return on equity of 110.94%. The firm had revenue of $793.43 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $794.87 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.86 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that MSCI Inc will post 16.86 earnings per share for the current year.

MSCI announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, October 28th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to repurchase up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

MSCI Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. MSCI’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Andrew C. Wiechmann sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.00, for a total transaction of $247,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 21,639 shares in the company, valued at $11,901,450. The trade was a 2.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Henry A. Fernandez acquired 2,290 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $536.17 per share, with a total value of $1,227,829.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 335,069 shares in the company, valued at $179,653,945.73. This trade represents a 0.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on MSCI from $588.00 to $611.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MSCI from $533.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of MSCI from $700.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on MSCI from $655.00 to $680.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of MSCI in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $642.63.

MSCI Company Profile

MSCI Inc is a global provider of investment decision support tools and services for the financial industry. The company is best known for its family of market indexes, which are widely used as benchmarks by asset managers and as the basis for exchange-traded funds and other passive products. In addition to index construction and licensing, MSCI offers portfolio analytics, risk models, factor and performance attribution tools, and a suite of data and technology solutions designed to support portfolio management and trading.

Beyond traditional indexing and risk analytics, MSCI has expanded into environmental, social and governance (ESG) research and ratings, offering data, scores and screening tools that help investors integrate sustainability considerations into investment processes.